Summary of 2017

I'm not going to crunch the numbers for this year as I usually do because I already know that I've bought far more than I've read. In fact I don't think I've read that much except whilst I was away in New Zealand for a month.

But I am going to talk about how 2017 has been different because it has in two main ways.

Firstly, I've bought a tonne of DC Omnibus editions. This Silver and Bronze Age material is all new and these collections are fantastic for me. I've also bought a few trades of older material but it's the Omnibus editions which I really like. However, they are big and I'm running out of space on my shelves for any more.

Secondly, and perhaps even more significantly, I've discovered digital comics. Firstly on kindle and then on comixology. These are brilliant because they are both cheap and they take up no space on the shelf (see above). I've bought loads in the various sales, some of which I already had but a similar amount of new stuff too. I plan to switch to digital for everything except the DC Omnibus editions.

One final point to note and it's important to me because its a bit of a milestone. I've now completed a run on Marvel Two-In-One. I'm chuffed to bits as it's only taken me since 1977 when I bought my first issue!

So what will 2018 bring I wonder? I need to really read more but gaming rulebooks have slowed down my pace on fiction. We shall see!

Summary of the Year - so far

Last year I just about completed my Marvel collection, with only a very few individual comics and a few trades, epics, masterworks and omnibuses to obtain.

So naturally I found myself drawn to something new as I like collecting. That something has proven to be pre-Crisis DC. This is as a result of a revamped DC programme to publish archives of their old material collected in Gold, Silver and Bronze Ages. Now I'm still not interested in Golden Age reprints but I definitely like the SA and BA editions and I've bought quite a few with more on pre-order. I've also picked-up other collections where I can and now consider myself to have made a reasonable start.

The other new thing for 2017 is digital comics. There have been some insane deals on the kindle store and I've bought lots and lots. Including quite a bit I already had in print but there is lots of masterworks and other collections I've taken a chance on because it was only £1.89 for the masterworks volume. Well, it would have been rude to pass-up such an opportunity!

I think this is the only edition I've completed  but I reckon I'll be reading quite a bit over the summer holidays.

I have also completed my Marvel Two-in-One collection with the purchase of #13 and I think that just leaves Thor #262 and Giant-size Spider-man #6 to get in this format.

Finally, the scores on the doors are

Comics/Back-issues: Bought 13 :read 0
Trade collections    : Bought 9 : read  11
Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions  : Bought 9 read 4 
Movies 1 (Guardians of the Galaxy 2)
Books 0

The above doesn't take into account the X-Static omnibus which was massive!

Summary of 2016

So it's time for me to add up just how much I've bought over the year and compare it to how much I've read. I actually started this process in 2012 in a (vain) attempt to try to get a balance. So far I've failed every year but the gap has been closing, Have I done better this year?

But before I make the lists, I wanted to record that I've found this year to be a hard one. Losing both parents six weeks apart and then also friends/ celebs together with terrible election results and awful football performances have just made this year a year of bad news.

However, two great holidays and some really good comics, games and movies have helped me through. Star Wars Rogue One and the new Marvel comics have been very good. I've got into Doctor Strange and enjoyed that movie and I'm finally getting to read some New Teen Titans which is generally regarded as a classic Bronze Age comic series. My collections of Cap, Daredevil and Thor are nearly complete which the purchase of some excellent collections. So it's been a good year for my hobbies.

So what did I buy in 2016

Darth Vader vol 2

Giant-size Spider-man 1

Giant-size Spider-man 3

Daredevil 155

Iron Man 90

X-Men annual #7

Star Wars Vol 2

Daredevil mark Waid Vol 4

Batman Brubaker 1

atomic Robo omnibus 2

Superior foes of Spider-man

Harley Quinn

Harley & Ivy

Miracleman Book 4

Harley Quinn and Power-girl

Thor Masterworks 13

Thor masterworks 14

Daredevil masterworks 9

Vader down

Starfire

Criminal Deadly Hands

Gotham Central omnibus

Daredevil mark Waid Vol 5

Black Science 4

Thor Masterworks 9

Thor Masterworks 15

Tales of the Batman Alan Brennet

All New Powers

Cap masterworks 8

Damage Control

Harley Quinn 4

Saga vol 6

Daredevil Masterworks 4

Atomic Robo omnibus 3

Cap & Batman

NTT vols 1-5

Velvet Vol 3

Graphic Ink Darwyn Cooke

The Fade Out Omnibus

Harley Quinn 5

MTIO 14 & 15

Edena

Doc Strange Epic Collection

DKR slipcase edition

Thor Epic Collection Titans Clash

Rat Queens vol 2

DKR prelude

Star Wars Vol 3

That equates to 25 trades, 6 masterworks, 2 Epic Collections, 10 Omnibus/ over-size collections and 8 actual comics.

I've actually read;

Astrix and the Missing Scroll

Rat Queens 1

Star Wars vol 1

Star Wars vol 2

Superior foes

of Spider-man Omnibus

Fatale vols 1-5

Broken Homes

Foxglove Summer

Railway Adventure

Darth Vader vol 1

Darth Vader vol 2

Peter Kay Sound of Laughter

Batman/ Cap

Doc Strange masterworks

Giant-size Superheroes

Giant-size Spider-man 1

New Teen Titans Vol 1

Giant-size Spider-man 2

Giant-size Spider-man 3

New Teen Titans Vol 2

Giant-size Spider-man 4

Giant-size Spider-man 5

Edena

New Teen Titans Vol 3

DKR prelude

Which equates 15 trades, 1 masterworks, 0 Epic Collections, 1 Omnibus/ over-size collections and 5 actual comics. Plus 3 books and 5 films. So my "To read" pile is still getting bigger.

However, my wants list is smaller. There are still new Harley Quinn collections to buy and there will be the odd Epic Collection which fits into my collection neatly ( Hulk, Thor and Daredevil etc.) but I really do think this year I will tip the balance in my favour.

We shall see.

Here's to a much improved 2017 and some more great comics.

Summary of 2016 so far

2016 has sucked so far in terms of the real world and the sporting world too.

But I'm pleased that my collections have grown and I'm almost up-to-date with everything and any new addtions will be new material.

I've bought some comics which have long been on my wants list.

And some lovely new hardback collections and Masterworks

And Harley Quinn of course!

So what have I bought so far this year?

Darth Vader vol 2

Giant-size Spider-man 1

Giant-size Spider-man 3

Daredevil 155

Iron Man 90

X-Men annual #7

Star Wars Vol 2

Daredevil mark Waid Vol 4

Batman Brubaker 1

atomic Robo omnibus 2

Superior foes of Spider-man

Harley Quinn

Harley & Ivy

Miracleman Book 4

Harley Quinn and Power-girl

Thor Masterworks 13

Thor masterworks 14

Daredevil masterworks 9

Vader down

Starfire

Criminal Deadly Hands

Gotham Central omnibus

Daredevil mark Waid Vol 5

Black Science 4

Thor Masterworks 9

Thor Masterworks 15

That's 13 trades, 5 Masterworks, 3 omnibus and the five original comics

I've read

Astrix and the Missing Scroll

Rat Queens 1

Star Wars vol 1

Star Wars vol 2

Superior foes

Fatale vols 1-5

Which is actually 9 trades and 1 omnibus. So I'm still buying more than I can read!

Reasons - well life really but I've spent I lot of time reading RPG material so that's my excuse.

I'm in the mood for reading at the moment and with a holiday imminent I'm hoping my "read" list will grow very soon!

Review of 2015

So it's now 2016 time to look at how I did in 2015. This is the forth year I've been keeping track of what I've bought and what I've read (with a count of movies seen at the cinema too)

2015 has really been a year of Star Wars. The Force Awakens finaly arrived in December but before that we had lots of new SW books from Marvel. Not read them yet but will do soon. I've also been reading SW role playing books from Fantasy Flight and we've got a nice Force and Destiny campaign going.

I've also completed my back issue collection with the purchase of Fantastic Four #72 but I've recently decided to get a few more back-issues.

This is what I bought in 2015 ( The numbers in brackets are the 2014 figures);

New comics/back-issues purchased      (33) 17
New trade collections                (33) 26
New copies of Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     (16) 6


So it looks like I've continue to successfully cut-back on the purchases. As I've said before, I've now got the key material to start reading Marvel from the beginning but there are a number of collections and mini-series I want to read first.

So what did I read in 2015?

The Black Lung Captain
Order of the Stick - Blood Runs in the Family
Black Science 2
Wicked Divine
Guardians of the Galaxy by Abbnett and Lanning vol 1 & 2
rocket racoon
Izombie 1
Harley Quinn 2
Iron Jackel
Denver
Black Science 3
Ace of Skulls
Hawleye 1-4
Scarlett 1 – 4
DH Star Wars 1 – 4
Doc Unknown 1 -3
Black Widow 1 -3

To compare what I've read with what I've bought (which is the main purpose of this blog)

Comics/Back-issues read      (5) 5
Trade collections read          (34) 24
Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions  read   (1) 0
Movies 5
Books 3

So although I've bought about 33% less stuff last year, I've managed to read less. Part of the reason for that as I said in my half-year summary, is that The Order of the Stick "Blood Runs in the Family" was massive and the Guardians of the Galaxy trades took quite long as they were 12 issues each.

Another reason is that I've been reading RPG rulebooks. In fact reading plenty of them but they aren't included in the tallies above.

Plans for 2016.

Read another Robin Hobb trilogy
Read Miracleman
Read Brubaker Batman and Catwoman and Fatale series.

And of course I have things on pre-order.

Happy New Year.

2015 Summary of the last six months

Halfway through the year, so it's time to check to see how I'm doing.

Note, the purpose of this blog is to keep a record rather than review of what I've bought and read. My aim is to be reading more than I'm buying as I've far too much stuff already!

For comparison this is what I bought in 2014 ;

New back-issues purchased      33
New trade collections                 33
New copies of Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions    16

This is what I read last year

Back-issues read      5
Trade collections read           34
Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions  read    1
Movies 4
Books 3

So what about the first six months of 2015

New back-issues and other comics purchased      10
New trade collections                 15
New copies of Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions    3

Wow! Definitely showing some serious signs of slowing down there. But did that mean I'm in the black when it came to reading?


Comics read      2
Trade collections read           8
Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions  read    0
Movies 3
Books 1

The answer is NO! It took me a long time to read Order of the Stick and the Guardians of the Galaxy trades and , for that reason, as well as the time spent reading RPG rulebooks, meant I was still in the red. Aarrrgh.

Plans for the next six months. Well we go on holiday soon so that means books and i hope to be gaming over the summer. So that means rulebooks.

But when I do get round to reading comics again I think I'll read Fatale by Brubaker, Miracleman and my She-Hulk and Black Widow trades.

Review of 2014

So it's now 2015 time to look at how I did this year. This is the third year I've been keeping track of what I've bought and what I've read (with a count of movies seen at the cinema too)

This is how I did in 2012 and 2013. In both years I've bought more than I've read, but one reason might be that I don't buy books but do read them and reading RPG rulebooks don't count on either column.

This is what I bought in 2014 ( The numbers in brackets are the 2013 figures);

New back-issues purchased      (30) 33
New trade collections                (51) 33
New copies of Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     (24) 16

So it looks like I've successfully cut-back on the purchases. Probably because I now possess the majority of the bronze-age material I want. Of course, there is more but I've now got the key material to start reading Marvel from the beginning.


Last year (2013) I made a vow to not read any Marvel comics and concentrate on the DC and independents. And I've kept to that promise. This is what I've read.


Order of the Stick Start of Darkness
All New Brave and the Bold
All New Brave and Bold Vol 2
Bone Vols 1-9
Order of the Stick Vol 3
Order of the Stick Vol 4
All Star Western Vol 1
Power Girl: Power Trip
Batwoman: Elergy and New 52: Vol 1
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Batwoman Vol 2
Black Science Vol 1
Heart of Ice and Roses of Berlin 
Babylon Steel by Gaie Sebold
Miracleman Vol 1
After Dario by Jules Hornbrook
Sleeper Omnibus
Doc Unknown Kickstarter trades
Batman and the Outsiders issues 
Batwoman Vol 3
Silver Age Classics (2 old Batman issues)
Batman Illustrated by Neil Adams Vol 1 -3
The Rocketeer collections
Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding

AND the last trades I read in 2014 - Harley Quinn

These two collections were trying to be the same but were quite different. Preludes and Knock-Knock jokes was the first (I think) solo series for HQ moving her away from the Joker's influence. The art by the Dodsons was pretty but the stories collected didn't quite click for me. Whereas the recent version for the New 52 by Palmiotti and Conner was a better story even if the body count was very high. HQ doesn't care about collateral damage. The latter hardcover collection is a very nice book indeed. It's clear to see why this is a popular title at the moment.

I'll continue with the new series and there's a new collection out in May.

So what does that add up to?

Back-issues read      (39) 5
Trade collections read          (23) 34
Epic Collections, Masterworks  & Omnibus editions  read   (0) 1
Movies (4)
Books (3) 

So -I'm in positive figures for trades (even though I'm way behind on back-issues and the larger collections) But at least I bought less larger collections this year. I feel this is a positive step. My wishlist is getting smaller and my back-issue wants list is only a handful. I'll do a separate post about that.

I was hoping to start my Marvel collection from the start this year but that's not gonna happen. Still plenty of other stuff to read first but I will read some of my modern Marvel collections.

2014 A summary of the last six months

As usual at this time of year I take a look at how I've been doing on my constant BUYING v READING competition. Previous retrospectives have shown that I'm buying more than I'm reading - but is that still the case?

For this summary I'm introducing a new category - that of Epic and other collections. These are the books which are either part of Marvel's new EPIC line or they don't quite fit into the Masterworks or standard trade description.

The numbers at the end of 2013 were (brackets are the 6 month figures);

New back-issues purchased      (30) 30
New trade collections                 (44) 51
New copies of Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     (6) 24

Back-issues read                       (19) 39
Trades read                                 (19) 23
Masterworks read                      0
Books (novels)                            (3) 6

AND: Movies watched at the cinema (3)  5

For the first 6 months of 2014 my record is;

New back-issues purchased      4
New trade collections                 21
New copies of Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     12
EPIC and other collections         2

Back-issues read                       0
Trades read                                 19
Masterworks read                      0
EPIC and other collections         0
Books (novels)                            1

AND: Movies watched at the cinema     2

So I can say that I've cut down on purchases (which is a win!) but still not managed to read more than I've bought. The book I read Lies of Locke Lamora did take me a long time and with work and reading RPG stuff my time for reading comics has been restricted lately. My plan for starting my Marvel run at the beginning from early 2015 is looking like it might need to be revised. I've got lots of Batman books to get through before I start! Plus I've a few Omnibuses of more modern material I want to get stuck into as well, so perhaps 2015 will be Modern Marvel, Powers and Grendel.

Summary of 2013!

As I have mentioned on occasion - this blog is to help me try to keep to a "promise" of only buying as much as I'm reading.

LOL. I wish I could keep it. Although I've improved slightly from my six month progress report, the numbers are still bad.

The numbers (brackets are the 6 month figures);

New back-issues purchased      (30) 30
New trade collections                 (44) 51
New copies of Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     (6) 24

Back-issues read                       (19) 39
Trades read                                 (19) 23
 Masterworks read                      0
 Books (novels)                            (3) 6

AND: Movies watched at the cinema (3)  4 plus Hobbit 2 Desolation of Smaug which I watched in December (twice!) and forgot to blog!

So good on books and I've read a fair amount of Star Wars Edge of the Empire roleplaying material too.

But definitely going to cut down on the purchases.

This year I am going to concentrate on non-Marvel universe material for my reading pile which means I'll be fresh to start from the beginning sometime in early 2015

Summary of the year - the halfway point

One of the main points of this blog is to try to balance what I've read with what I'm buying.

So far this year

The numbers;

New back-issues purchased      30
New trade collections                 44
New copies of Masterworks  & Omnibus editions     6

Back-issues read                       19
Trades read                                 19
 Masterworks read                      0
 Books (novels)                            3

AND: Movies watched at the cinema  3

Hmmm...so far it's been bad, bad..BAD in terms of balance as I've bought far too much. BUT the three novels do account for some serious reading so I'm pleased to have got them in.

Resolution for the next 6 months

Cut down on the trades!

Make JULY Star Wars month and read the new Star Wars stuff I've bought.
 

2012: A year of Masterworks and Defenders back-issues

Just been looking through my purchases last year and probably winning multiple issues of New Mutants and Two-In-One were the biggest bargains although my favourite win was just recently when I picked-up Marvel Team-Up No.3 and my final Dracula issues to complete the set and get a MTU I've always wanted in fantastic condition for a great price!

I seem to have got a number of Team-Ups, Two-In-Ones and Captain America comics this year but I guess I'm surprised by the number of Defenders issues as I've only just started collecting the title. In fact I just really need a Marvel Masterworks edition to reprint the early issues and I'm done with the Defenders.

I've certainly bought a lot of masterworks this year. All but 2 in paperback so not that expensive really. It'll be a case of picking them up as they are released from now on unless I go decide to pick up those early X-Men editions.

This year I might get a few more over-sized collections (artist editions etc.) as I do like the look of my Complete Judege Dredd by Brian Bolland. It is lovely to look through. There are Dave Stevens collections I am certainly interested in.

2012: Summary of the year

Welcome to 2013 and a time to check how I've done in terms of buying vs reading.

This was the situation at the end of June.

So what's happened in the last six months?

The numbers;

New back-issues purchased      67
New trade collections                 15
New copies of Masterworks       4

Back-issues read                       57
Trades read                                 14
Masterworks read                      1
 Books (novels)                            2

AND: Movies watched at the cinema   4

This gives a total score of


New back-issues purchased      93
 New trade collections                24
New copies of Masterworks       11

Back-issues read                       103
Trades read                                 21
Masterworks read                       1
Books (novels)                            4

AND: Movies watched at the cinema   7

One thing I've spotted is that I bought a great deal more in the last six months but I don't think I've necessarily spent more money. 

Still, I either need to read more or I can cut down on my spending! Perhaps both if I can!

So those are the numbers...perhaps I should do another post in the next few days to mention my highlights of the year.

6 months..progress?

I thought it would be interesting (for me) to assess how many comics, books and trades I've read compared to what I've bought as we reach the halfway point in the year

The numbers;

New back-issues purchased      26
New trade collections                 9
New copies of Masterworks       7

Back-issues read                       44
Trades read                                 7
Books (novels)                            2 (and 100 pages of my current Robin Hobb)

AND: Movies watched at the cinema    3

OK, the Robin Hobbs I've read this year are @700 pages each and been pretty meaty but most books are these days, but it looks to me like I'm buying more than I'm reading.

Looking at my budget I'm planning on purchasing 2-3 trades or masterworks each month for the rest of the year, I need to get a bit quicker or make more more time for my reading to at least break-even.

To be fair though I am catching up with my masterwork collecting and my back-issue list is fairly small these days so, with a big effort, I hope by the end of the year I will be reading more than I'm buying.

Looking forward to getting the following in the next few months

Morning Glories Vol 3
Fatale by Brubaker
Iron Man Vol 9
Star Wars Agent of Empire
Tomb of Dracula Vol 1
Thor Masterworks vols 10 and 11
Cap America Masterworks Vol 2
Iron Man Masterworks Vol 2
Rex Mundi Omnibus Vol 1